The Last Song
by mirai aria
Summary: AU and What If? In the equivalent of the New York part in the anime, what if Yuki turns Shuichi away? What will the price of his stubborness lead to? [YukixShuichi] 2nd and Final Part up!
1. Part 1

Disclaimer: No, Gravitation doesn't belong to me. It belongs to Maki Murakami-sama/sensei and if it belonged to me, it would be one big, crazy story nobody would love…

A/N: And this is a fic my muses begged for me to write after watching _The Last Samurai_. It's long, AU and a _What If? _ to boot. This basically uses the idea for an AU that's been playing in my mind for a while now, where Shuichi is a prince of a country, a summoner/fighter/performer and all that. Yes, just an AU. You'll see that after I finish _Yuki_ – which won't be in quite a while. Warning, this story is angsty… and I don't think this thing has a happy-ending, but think of it as a prologue to that… AU fic playing in my mind. Finally, this fic is what's been preventing me from working on Chapter 12 of _Yuki_ so I am _glad_ I finally got this over with. And I'm dividing it into two parts, the second part I'll be posting tomorrow or so : 3

Was listening to _Idyll's End_, _Ronin,_ _A Way of Life,_ _A hard teacher, To know my Enemy, Red Warrior_ and the rest of the _Last Samurai_ soundtrack. Wee!

The Last Song

There was something in the air the boy simply could not identify. Something sad, something longing, something that reminded him very much of how he felt at that moment and he felt… nothing. A song lingered in the air, floating aimlessly, whispering into his ears, and slipping past before his slender fingers before he could grasp it, fading, sad. He took a deep breath and held it within him as he stared at the abandoned house before him, solemn and crumbling, its walls crying of its decadence. He heard all of these and shared their sorrow. There were things only he alone and a select few would understand. 

He released the breath he'd been holding, eyelids slowly falling over his amethyst eyes until they covered them fully, and spoke in a quiet whisper. 

"I'm going in. Wait for me here." 

He opened his eyes and looked over his shoulder, meeting the gaze of his brown-haired aide, and best friend. A silence, thick and pregnant with meaning, came between them as words were exchanged with mere gazes. Finally, his aide nodded in understanding. His best friend turned to the tall blonde beside him, passing a message through the mental bond made between them, before turning to him once more. Together, the brunette and the blonde gave him a low bow as a sign of their acknowledgement of his order and the boy turned away before beginning to take small, light steps towards the dark house.

The metal handle was cold against his skin and quietly, he tried to remember why he was here, so far away from the warm confines of his home. Far away, he knew, there was a feast going on in honor of him; a coronation ceremony where he was needed more than anything. And yet, here he was, standing in the porch of an old, perhaps even ancient, house, long abandoned and falling into pieces each and every day. 

__

"Yuki Eiri…" he whispered softly, allowing the thought to float aimlessly into the cold, dying house, hoping it would find the lonely soul he had been in search of for months if he were there. _"Yuki…. are you here…?"_

He ground his teeth and turned the knob, before entering in. There was no use in waiting for a response before entering. Even if nobody answered his lonely call, he knew he had to see it for his own eyes, search every aging nook of the abandoned house before he accepted the fact that, yes, Yuki Eiri was, indeed, not in this house.

Before the sound of creaking wood reached his ears as he took a step forward into the house, a different, yet familiar, sound entered his mind, invading his senses. 

__

"Go away, brat. Leave me alone…" the voice in his mind was gruff and anything but grateful but his lips curved into a smile that displayed relief and pure joy.

"Yuki…!" he answered back mentally before breaking into a run, ignoring the way the wooden floor creaked and gave out tiny, threatening cracks as he ran in search of the voice's owner. The last thing in his mind was falling into a hole in the floor and injuring himself, what came first was being reunited with his lover. His lover who had run away and left him months ago without a word of warning, leaving him both distressed and worried, not for his welfare, but for his beloved.

"I said **go away**!" The voice lashed out but there was something familiar, and normal, with the way it was said that urged the boy to go faster, to find his lover sooner. Eyes screwed shut, tears began to form and fall off from the edge of his eyes in large beads and he shook his head.

__

"No!" he yelled back adamantly both mentally and out loud, not caring if he sounded like a child. "_I am **not** leaving you alone! Not now… now that I've found you!"_

A door swung open for him, its wood slamming against the nearby wall with a loud crash and he came to a stop, chest rising and falling rapidly as he struggled to catch his breath. In front of him, the blonde writer and historian, Yuki Eiri, sat on the floor, a shadow of the arrogant nobleman that walked the halls of _Sen_ and captured his attention months ago. Still, the boy felt no change in his feeling for the man, and he found himself moved to find the ordinarily strong and emotionless blonde like this; weak and defenseless.

"You came." Eiri's whisper was cold and harsh and the boy took a step closer. The only light in the room came from the broken window above Eiri and through it moonlight shone, showering the blonde with its enchanting rays. The boy thought Eiri looked breathtaking with his pale skin glowing ethereally, turning porcelain-like, in the moonlight and his golden-blonde hair taking a platinum hue. Maybe it was just him and his longing for the man that turned Eiri so... perfect and serene and godlike, but it didn't really matter to him. Eiri was Eiri and that was that.

"Yes, I came." The boy said, coming to a stop a mere few steps away from his lover. "You know, wherever you go I'll find you…. another country, another continent.. it doesn't matter. I'll do whatever it takes."

"Shut up." Eiri whispered slowly, turning his head away from him and shutting those amber eyes from him. Eiri was shunning him and the boy felt a tiny tinge of hurt in his chest. Was this how he was to be treated after all that he'd done for the man? 

__

"Can't you see? I love you…" he wanted to project mentally but before it could leave the confines of his mind, he held it back, knowing it was futile and it would only serve to feed the hatred burning within Eiri. As much as he hated to admit it, Eiri… didn't feel the same way for him. The writer had said, on countless occasions, how much he'd hated him but none of those utterances ever held such strong hatred beneath them… though… though… if he said it now… with so much conviction, so much truth…

…The boy didn't know what he would do.

"Shuichi… _why—" _The boy's breath caught when Eiri spoke finally, filling the painful silence with his solemn voice."…. why are you here?"

The boy's lips curved into a soft smile as he crouched down to his lover's level. He spoke in a quiet voice, soft and solemn, pained, "…because I looked for you." 

Eiri's eyelids fluttered open in a slow and deliberate movement, but he kept his gaze away from Shuichi as he spoke. "I didn't want to be found." He told him abruptly. Suddenly, Shuichi became aware of the dagger that was in the older man's hands. His amethyst eyes widened in realization and he let out a tiny gasp. He lifted one delicate hand to his mouth and he gazed down at the deadly blade in disbelief before finally staring at Eiri's face questioningly.

__

"Why…?" he let the question slip without expecting an answer to that. 

"Leave me alone." Eiri breathed before blinking and meeting his gaze. "I didn't want you to come, I wasn't hoping for you to come."

Shuichi bit his lower lip and his eyebrows furrowed as he struggled to keep the tears at bay. "_Why?_" he began, his voice trembling, "What is it with me that you hate so much? Why couldn't you hope I could come? _Why_ did you want to die? _I_ would die if you did…." He closed his eyes as he rose up and balled his hands into fists. "_Why?!_ I'd find you… either way… whenever…. however… where you hoping I'd find you _dead_, Yuki?" 

"It's _not_ fair!" Shuichi cried, opening his eyes and glaring at Eiri accusingly. "_I_ love you. _I_ would look for you anywhere. _I_ missed you… _I_ was worried sick…. why…. why can't you be for me, for once? _Why_ did you leave me like that? _Why?"_

The blonde writer shot him a hard look which made him stop abruptly and swallow hard. Silence came between them and Eiri rose from his position, brushing the dust off his midnight black clothes. "You want to know the answer…?" Eiri whispered quietly, amber eyes turned away from him, fixed on the cold wooden flooring, caked with dust.

"Because I never loved you in the first place." Eiri told him, allowing contact between his amber eyes and Shuichi's amethyst ones, finally. Shuichi's mouth opened in a gasp. "Because…. I wish, more than anything, to have never met you… you… you barged into my life, you opened old wounds, you brought up things I'd rather forget…. How… _how_ can I love you?"

Shuichi was silent, amethyst eyes searching within those amber orbs for the truth, for proof of what the man had just said and fell into a state of disbelief. Why hadn't he noticed? Why hadn't he noticed the hatred? Why had he chosen to wait for until everything became hard to shrug off and ignore? Why had he waited until it was right in front of him, screaming to be noticed? The hatred, the pain, the disgust was clear in the writer's eyes and… he hated himself for it.

All those nights together, the times when he believed there was _love_ in the man's gestures… It _had_ been only him — Him and his prestigious status; Prince of _Sen_ indeed. Why hadn't he listened to Eiri's elder sister? _Why?_

He didn't know a full minute had passed when he spoke finally, but it didn't really care anymore. "I understand." He said in a quiet voice, drained of life, hurt, unwanted. He closed his eyes and bowed his head in defeat. A small, bitter smile formed on his lips then, a mockery of all those cheerful smiles he made in their times together.

"I'm sorry."

The statement seemed to have been echoed by the weeping walls of the abandoned house. 

"_I'm sorry_… for forcing you into this. For… for taking you for granted." He tilted his head up and locked gazes with the blonde writer, a genuine smile on his lips. "But… it would still hurt me if you died. _Please_, don't kill yourself." 

Amber eyes widened but he continued in the same, determined voice. Shuichi tried his hardest not to show his weakness, tried to prevent the tremble in his voice and so far he was succeeding. For how long he would last like this, he did not know, but hoped he would last for long enough. He breathed in sharply and allowed his eyes to show the pain he felt, if only for a few brief seconds.

"_Live_, please? Just live." Shuichi told him quietly, a silent plea, before placing a hand over his chest, where the small pendant-charm the great Sakuma Ryuichi gave him, as a ward against the demons which roamed the land freely, rested between his collarbones. Eiri watched in a stunned silence as the younger of the two proceeded to take off his necklace. It was a fact; if there was _anything_ Shuichi cherished more than anything, next to him of course, it was the great Sakuma Ryuichi and anything from the legend.

With the necklace in his hand, Shuichi stretched his hand forth towards the blonde writer. "Take it," he breathed, "Your sister, her highness, is worried sick, you know? Go back to her… just give it back to me next time I visit. You need this more than I do."

Shuichi watched as the pendant, with the jewels encrusted on it shining in the moonlight, fell onto Eiri's outstretched hand. The way its silver chain slipped from his fingers towards his beloved's hands reminded him bitterly of what he let go of today. He was hurt but he would heal, at least he hoped he would.

Depriving himself of a last look, he spun on his heels, his long black hair whipping about in the moonlight like black silk, and headed towards the door. "I'm leaving." He breathed once he was at the doorway, "I'm needed at the crowning ceremony. They can't go on without their crown prince, can they?"

His lips curved into a small smile as he felt the first signs of the mental connection he built between him and Eiri crumbling. No, the connection would no longer be needed. "No…" he answered himself, "they can't, can they?" He closed his eyes and took the first step forward, his first step into the unknown without anyone once more.

He was about to take another step when he remembered something. Eiri had once told him, after getting tired of his incessant pestering for a formal declaration of love, that he did like something of him after all. It was his hair, soft and perfect like black silk. Eiri wouldn't tell him he loved him because he never did and his hair….

"One last thing…" Shuichi whispered, coming into a stop. He lifted a hand up to grab a fistful of those soft black tresses and closed his eyes once more. "This hair… is nothing." He tugged hard at his hair and it fell away, falling onto the dusty floor with a dull thud. Long strands of unnatural magenta hair fell away, replacing the silken black hair and suddenly his eyes didn't look so out of place. Amethyst and magenta – a fitting combination. 

Everything was a lie. 

Without saying anything, he continued on, knowing the blonde writer understood the meaning of the action. With the walls of the house seemingly wailing and crying for him to stop, he took each and every stepped with a determination, each time ignoring the pain eating at his heart and the crying child within him.

No, he would be strong. If Eiri did not love him, then he would learn to stop loving the man and move on because that…. That was the right thing to do, right? Hadn't he tried enough?

Yes, he agreed silently, he had tried enough, so much and it all had been for the naught.

He took in the worried looks his aides gave him as he stepped out of the abandoned house, allowing the door to slam behind him. He tilted his head up and took on a more regal posture, making himself look every bit the crown prince of _Sen_.

Before his best friend could say anything, he spoke in a soft yet commanding voice which silenced them completely. 

"Let's go back. We have a crowning ceremony to attend."

His blonde aide nodded before placing to fingers into his mouth and whistling while his best friend could only stare at him in shock and understanding. 

__

"He didn't want me." Shuichi told him mentally when his gaze met his, _"Hiro, he didn't want me_." 

Before he could break down in tears, their carriage arrived and Shuichi found himself climbing into it in pure silence. Hiro sat beside him and placed a hand over his shoulder as a sign of sympathy and he made no move to bat it away. 

He needed it. It was going to be a long ride home.

---

Amber eyes narrowed as they fell upon the silver pendant in his hand. His knees buckled and moments later he found himself on the floor once more, this time out of his will. But he didn't care and he kept his eyes on the small trinket, wondering why he was here alone again and what it was that he had just done. 

His younger brother's words echoed in his mind, warning and worried: _"He'll get tired of it someday, if you keep pushing him away like this. He loves you, but no matter how much if you keep on hurting him like this he'll just have to give up…. And when he does, you'll regret it, Uesugu Eiri. You'll regret it."_

"I am regretting it…" he whispered softly, his vision blurring suddenly of unshed tears. Shuichi was gone, he had pushed him away one time too many, hurt him so bad. _Hurt him so bad –_ he remembered the way the boy's voice had sounded, so filled with bitterness, as he tugged at his hair and revealed his natural hair. Shuichi must think he finds it disgusting… 

"No… it wasn't a lie.." Eiri told the pendant quietly, wondering if Shuichi was still around and if could hear him. The link between him and the boy was gone, _totally_ and he felt nothing but a cold empty space where the connection was in his mind. He would not admit it to anyone, but that link's presence was his solace in his many months away from them, from anyone.

Maybe, he had been hoping for Shuichi to come… maybe…

He buried his face into his hands and let the tears fall freely, not caring if the pendant was bruising his face as he pressed his skin against it. It was Shuichi. It was what little was left of Shuichi.

And for the first time in many years, he cried, not because of one Kitazawa Yuki, but because of someone else… because of someone he truly loved and was now gone.

__

"Shuichi…" he called out mentally, not caring if the link between him and the boy was gone, hoping that somehow it would reach his beloved. 

The walls of the abandoned house shared what little warmth was left in them with him and listened to his quiet sobs. 

---

Rivets of blood, crimson in color flowed freely, like a river, on the pristine white marble floors as the bodies seemed to pile up. Maiko edged away from the crazed prince at the center of the hall, her silver and gold robes stained with red. Deep blue eyes widened as the dark-haired prince closed in on her, eyes blazing with insanity and hatred.

"Tachi….. get away from me! **Get away! Get away!**" she screamed, wrapping her arms about her as if to cover herself. The prince merely smirked, before bringing his sword's blade up to his lips and licking at the excess blood on it quietly. Tears began to roll down her soiled cheeks and she shut her eyes before screaming at the top of her lungs, "**Get away! GET AWAY! _GET AWAY!_**"

She began flailing her arms about wildly, hoping to ward off the crazed man and keep him, and his blade, as far away from her as she could. She continued crawling backwards with each and every step from the man, ignoring the corpses that littered the place, trying to ignore the fact that the body behind her might just be her parents'. 

"Please… go awa—" Her breath caught when her back pressed against the smooth marble of the wall and more tears came. A gasp escaped her lips instead then and she he breathing became irregular when she felt the sword's shadow upon her, poised to strike, to kill. 

The sound of blade singing as it sliced through thin air sent alarms sounding in Maiko's mind and she gritted her teeth, preventing those sobs from escaping, in an attempt to make one last defiant stand. The blade was a mere millimeter from her head when it stopped and she creaked an eye open to see what had happened only to find Tachi staring down at her silently, his face blank.

Her breathing evened as she found herself staring into those unnaturally blackened eyes and without even thinking, she stretched a hand out, wanting to reach for that blank face. 

"Tachi…?" she whispered shakily, no longer afraid suddenly. Slowly and carefully, she rose to her two feet, avoiding the sharp edge of the blade and then continued to reach for the lost prince's face, wondering morbidly if the prince knew what he had just done. Tachi watched her every movement, those blackened eyes never wavering as they assessed her each and ever movement.

She breathed out slowly, resisting the urge to shiver, when her fingers came into contact with the dark-haired man's warm flesh. This was the man who single-handedly wiped the whole Shindou clan without problem. _This_ was the man who killed her parents in front of her without blinking an eye, all the while wearing a crazed, satisfied smirk on his lips. This was the man…. 

She let out a tiny yelp when Tachi grabbed her wrist roughly and pulled it away from him. Blackened eyes fixed on hers and she bit her lower lip in her bid to stop herself from screaming out in both pain and fear.

"Your brother, where is he?" Tachi spoke slowly, in a clear, hauntingly monotonous voice. 

Maiko's eyes widened in horrifying realization but before she could say anything she was thrown down the floor in one strong yank. Everything became deathly silent and her world was thrown into darkness after that. She wondered, with grim fascination, if this was death and found herself worrying, more than anything, for her older brother.

---


	2. Part 2

The palace was deathly silent when they arrived and as Shuichi stepped out of the carriage, he noted the absence of the soldiers stationed at the front gate. Gone where the sounds of joyful partying and music. The sound of laughter was completely absent in the air and, as he stretched his mind forth in search of something – anything – he found nothing.

__

Nothing.

He turned to the tall blonde beside him and gave him a look which the man returned with a firm nod. Hiro, who was just behind them, drew his katana and fell into step beside him while he fingered the hidden weapons in his long sleeves nervously. K readied his guns, his fingers ready to pull the trigger at any time.

Cautiously, they advanced into the palace a single file, very much aware of their surroundings. The walls were untouched, it seemed, but Shuichi felt the shadow cast upon them and the way they seemed to weep blackened tears. 

He closed his eyes when the huge wooden doors that led to the main hall came to view. When he had left earlier that night and stopped right where he was standing right now to give one last look back, the joyful sounds of festivities filled his ears instead of a deafening silence that filled the place now. His aides looked at him, noticing the dread that clouded his eyes.

"I'm okay…" he breathed before putting on a smile. He shook his head, "No, really, I'm okay… let's… enter."

He closed his eyes. "K, Hiro… open the doors for me," he ordered quietly and both of his aides walked towards the doors, standing in front of each door, a hand pressed on its thick wood. 

A loud creak marked the opening of the doors and he dreaded the moment he opened his eyes. He held his breath and felt as if time had stopped when his eyes fell on the dozens of bodies that strewn the marble floors, staining its pristine white marble pink. They entered the main hall in silence and Shuichi kept his head up, not wanting to see anyone he knew in the heap of bodies, not wanting to see the way their eyes opened in death, staring at nothing with fear and pain.

Death scared him and he knew it forever would with its mystery and morbid beauty.

"Took your time to get here, didn't you? Shindou Shuichi?" an ominous voice said and Shuichi narrowed his eyes dangerously as he turned to its source. 

There, hovering above the throne, was a massive figure cloaked in shadows and darkness. A tattered cape billowed against an invisible wind behind him and his surrounding area seemed to grow darker as the shadows that radiated from him seemed to eat more and more of the light that lit the room.

"Who are you and why have you done this?" Shuichi whispered slowly, his voice smooth and free of fear. K and Hiro, who flanked him, tensed visibly though, and their grip on their weapons tightened.

"Me…?" the figure questioned in a slightly humored voice, "Me…? You forget me?" 

"I don't know you in the first place." Shuichi muttered under his breath, knowing the dark figure would hear him even if he spoke in a quiet whisper.

A dark laugh sounded in the dead silence and Shuichi watched as the figure slowly descended towards the ground. He noted the fact that the figure was wearing an armor of heavy metal beneath those robes of black when the sound of chinking metal filled the hall and watched with unblinking eyes as the figure, the man, seemed to call upon the darkness around him.

"I am the demon _your ancestors_ sealed five hundred years ago, in case you have forgotten." The man moved to gather his cape, to wrap it around his body. Glowing red eyes stood out from his darkened face and Shuichi noticed the number of horns jutting out of the man's head. He lowered his gaze and gasped when he recognized the sleeping figure on the throne beside the man.

"Maiko!" Shuichi yelled and was about to bolt into a run towards his sister when his aides caught him by both of his arms, stopping his movements effectively.

"Shuichi, no!" Hiro cried beside him, using a hand to tilt his lord's head towards him. He stared hard into the prince's amethyst's gaze before shaking his head. "We'll save her, don't worry… we'll get rid of the guy… but not now. Get a hold of yourse—"

"NO! That's Maiko! He's going to kill her! He's going to—!" Shuichi exclaimed, struggling to break free from their grasp. The demon watched on, ruby-red eyes seemingly narrowing as they watched the prince struggle helplessly.

__

"You'll find a way so he doesn't kill her, now, won't you?" K's voice sounded in his mind and he stopped struggling, realization hitting him. He nodded slowly and bit his lower lip.

"Yes…" he whispered and both Hiro and K let go of him once it became clear he would not rush against the man unprepared anymore. The _Sen_ prince shot the demon a hard look which only seemed to fuel the demon's amusement.

"_What _do you _want?_" Shuichi asked slowly and tried not to be distracted when he saw his beloved sister move slightly at the edge of his eyesight. No, that was what the demon wanted exactly – him to be distracted, so he would become easy-kill. What did the demon have against his family, he wondered? Moreover, how did it know about his weakness when it came to his sister? 

__

How?

"I want your life, your blood." The demon said, slowly in a mocking voice, delighting in the tiny squirm Shuichi failed to keep in. "I want your blood to stain these floors, for you to join your clan in the depths of hell."

Shuichi swallowed before gathering enough strength to scream his response. He would not let his sister die along with them. He would not die either, would live on. He had left something important in Eiri's hands and he would make sure to get it back.

"**I won't let you kill Maiko!**"

Ironic how only hours ago he was urging Eiri to live and here he was… pitted into what could be a battle to the death.

The demon laughed, "Then fight, _Shindou_. Fight for your life and all that you believe in."

"I will…" Shuichi whispered as he locked gazes with the demon. Hiro and K took their places beside him and readied their weapons, easing into their battle stances. He, on the other hand, took a deep breath before, in a graceful movement that looked like a part of a dance, produced a pair of small fans from his sleeves. He tilted his head slightly to the left to give Hiro one last look before turning to his right and giving K a hard look. 

__

"When you see an opening, go for Maiko then take her out… we'll follow you shortly." 

The blonde Outsider gave no nod to confirm his order but Shuichi knew K understood and knew how to do just that. "I will fight…" he whispered as he spun around, both fans in hand. A small smile crept on his lips as he closed his eyes and opened both fans. "…and you'll find yourself in hell very soon, where you belong."

"We'll see who finds who in hell very soon." The demon said with a laugh before forming a long, massive sword from nothing but shadows. 

He closed his eyes and spread both of his arms before, with a flick of his wrist, opening his fans and then beginning an intricate dance. When his eyes opened, they revealed a pair of glowing amethysts, like the jewels themselves polished to perfection, burning with unspoken determination.

He spun around, his magenta hair whipping about him, shadowing his visage and he kept his eyes fixed on the demon before him. With mesmerizing movements, he opened his mouth and began a quiet song which seemed to wrap his very body with pure power. "_I summon…"_ he whispered, his eyes lidded as he lifted his right hand up and then sent it down in a graceful arc. The fan seemed to burn in the air as it finished the arc and when it was done, what was left of it in Shuichi's hand was a slender knife, its blade sharp and clear. He did the same his left hand and once both of his hands held knives, he began another dance, this time a deadlier dance with a purpose that became clear when the ground beneath him began to glow and turn hot white.

A glowing rune, one that represented water in an ancient and forgotten language, formed on the floor and he crouched down and reached a hand down to the solid floor, which turned liquid suddenly as his hand entered in, fishing for something. 

"_You… spirit of water..."_ he sang as he began pulling at the creature within the floor, the spell, that had taken hold of his knife. The demon watched in silence, eagerly awaiting the official beginning of the duel. K and Hiro stood motionless, yet ready to strike should the enemy make a move on their vulnerable prince. 

A creature cloaked in a dress of diamond white stepped out of the spell, long, silver-white hair flowing down her shoulders as she took her place beside Shuichi. Her skin was pure white, like fresh snow and her eyes like glowing sapphires. It was a contrast; Shuichi with his magenta hair, and clear amethyst eyes, the summoned creature with her long silver-white hair and sapphire blue eyes.

"Done?" The demon questioned and Shuichi nodded wordlessly even as the summoned creature standing beside him began chanting the beginnings of a spell.

With a smirk, the demon charged at the summoned creature, his sword ready to cut down the creature's slender body. Shuichi sang, strengthening and controlling the creature with his voice while he danced.

The creature let out a sharp cry when her arms to block the massive blade, designed to cut down and not to be stopped in such a way, and pushed the demon away before unleashing a barrage of crystal-like ice shards towards the demon from his back. Two found themselves deep into the demon's body and Shuichi, upon noticing this, sang louder, fiercer, calling upon every strength reserves in his body as he urged the creature, urged himself to fight harder. 

The demon leapt away from the summoned creature before, with a feral howl, reaching for the shards on his back and pulling them out. He shot Shuichi a venomous glare before angrily throwing them away, allowing them to crush several lifeless bodies about him, and then unleashing the shadows which wrapped about him. Shuichi watched as the shadows spread, eating away at the walls of the room, and he let out a sharp cry, sending his summoned creature after the demon. The creature complied, leaping at the demon, taking a hold of the demon's horns before, crying just as sharply as her master and calling upon shards of ice which formed about her before, as one, cutting through the air and then through the demon's flesh.

The demon let a sharp cry and Shuichi turned to K sharply, sending an urgent mental message.

__

"Now! Grab Maiko and make a run for it, okay? Hiro and I will take care of this!"

K nodded at him before breaking into a run towards the throne. The demon, noticing this, laughed. "Being naughty, aren't we, Shindou?"

"Yes, being naughty—" Shuichi breathed, spinning on his heels to face him. "—You're awfully weak for a five-hundred-year-old demon. I've seen demons fare better than you have with my summon here." 

The summoned creature let out a triumphant cry which made Shuichi grin. "See, she agrees!" 

__

"I've got her, Shuichi." K said in his mind and he nodded. _"I'm going to make my way out through the windows, OK?"_

"Okay.." Shuichi whispered and then gave the demon his full attention once more. "It's time I sealed you and sent you off to hell, demon. You deserve more than measly sending off for what you did to my family though…." He paused and narrowed his eyes, his voice taking a dangerous tone. The demon had killed his whole family, basically everyone he knew, and quite possibly almost succeeded in the extinction of the whole Shindou Clan. "…but I'll let the people in charge there deal with you." He spat as he made the knives in his hands disappear. _"I've lost many people tonight… first Eiri… then this… wow… just.. **nice**." _He thought bitterly as he began a spell that would vanquish the demon from the physical plane completely.

This demon was not normal, he was supposed to be harder to defeat than that… but… but he was easy and it troubled Shuichi, only a bit. He had succeeded, didn't he? Wasn't he alive? Wasn't Maiko safe? He was just making things complicated.

He closed his eyes and as soon as the spell began, tendrils of white light began emanating from his body, stretching out to wrap themselves around the demon's body. His summoned creature stepped away, disappearing into nothing with a proud smile that was not unnoticed by both him and Hiro.

Slowly, he lost awareness of the physical plane and was soon immersed in the spell he was casting. His voice was soft and clear as he sang the spell, remembering what Ryuichi had said about his voice, his songs. They were different, without a doubt. They were like sirens, able to call upon powers with just their voices. Each song was different, Ryuichi had said. They may have the same words but the emotion with which they were sung, imbued with, would never be the same thus making them different.

And now… he wondered, what was he singing for? 

__

"Yuki…" he thought quietly, without breaking his concentration. Yes, he was thinking about Eiri. After this, he would go back, would see if they could work things out. He may have given up tonight but he was ready to give it a try again, after all, that was him, wasn't it? He was always persistent, never really giving up on anything. And he knew there was no real finality except death.

He remembered the charm he left in Eiri's hands, he smiled inwardly, thinking of how that was the perfect opening. He would come to his mansion under the pretense of his 'unclaimed trinket' and then… he would talk, reason, argue, pester… and he would win. He _would_ make Eiri fall in love with him this time!

__

Shuichi!

He furrowed his eyebrows, wondering if it had just been him. 

__

Shuichi! Beh--!

His eyes shot open, not because the voice sounded terribly panicked, but because of the sharp pain in his mid-section. He let out a strangled cry as he stared up at the demon, noticing how far away he looked suddenly. He whipped his head to his side, searching for Hiro frantically only to find him on the floor beside him, struggling to stay upright while he used his _katana_ to support his weight. His left leg was bleeding, that much Shuichi could see and he would have said something, anything to his friend if not for the hand that suddenly grabbed his chin and tilted his head farther to the left. 

The face he last expected to see filled his sight and he let the man's name roll of his tongue with disgust. "_Aizawa Tachi_…" 

The dark-haired prince grinned as he released his hold of his chin before placing his hand over his cheek. "Missed me, Shu-chan-sama?"

Shuichi opened his mouth to say something when he felt the pain in his mid-section intensify, blinding him for a few seconds. He took the time to look down then and could not help but break into tears when he saw the sword impaling him, stained with his own blood.

No, he would not be able to go back to Eiri now. Not anymore. He was going to die, from the looks of it…

"I was wondering…. wondering when you'd come…. I was waiting…" Aizawa's breath was hot upon his skin as the dark-haired prince leaned forward and planted a seemingly innocent kiss on his forehead. "He said—" Tachi turned to the demon who was watching them with pure amusement, "—you'd come, come back no matter what. So I waited…."

Shuichi let out a bitter laugh, and blood trickled down his lips, "So you decided to kill my relatives out of boredom, ne? That's **nice**, Tachi. You never run out of things to hurt me with, don't you?"

Aizawa Tachi smiled, seeming innocent for a few seconds, before breaking into a smirk and darting his tongue out to lick at the blood trailing down Shuichi's lips. "I don't like hurting you…. I don't want to…"

"You're hurting me…" the magenta-haired boy whispered bitterly before letting out a sharp cry when Tachi pushed the sword farther into his wound.

"I want you… to stay with me... forever… and ever… and ever…" Tachi whispered into his ear, and Shuichi's eyes widened when the man began nibbling at his ear, "…perfection and perfection. The best of the best…. together for all eternity. No more Yuki Eiri… no more Maiko... no more anyone."

"Just you and me…"

The last thing Shuichi's mind registered hearing was Hiro's agonized scream of hopelessness and, perhaps, his own. But he was not screaming because of the pain of it all, he screamed because he wanted to call out for his Eiri, his Yuki one last time.

Then, there was nothing.

---

Eiri rose up finally, gathering enough strength to do so. He had come with a conclusion after long hours of thinking. His Shuichi would never truly give up and when the boy came for his precious pendant, he would tell him just how much he loved him, how much he mattered to him.

"Shuichi, just you wait." He told the silence and the wall listened intently to his revelation. "I won't just live… I'll come back, for you…" He let his lips curve into what could only be a smile and he realized suddenly how good he felt suddenly, to be rid of the burden he'd kept inside him for months.

Yes, he loved Shuichi more than anything. It wasn't his hair, or the way his unique eyes shone in the dark. It wasn't his voice either that many would kill for to hear. It wasn't the power he possessed.

It was because Shuichi was Shuichi and Shuichi loved him and had always been willing to give everything for him. He marched towards the door and slowly, in a dignified silence, made his way out of the room. So many thoughts came through his mind, so many ideas of how to make it up to his lover – yes, _his_ lover, _his_ Shu-chan. 

He would take him out to a restaurant some time, even come to one of his concerts. He would be gentler to him, be nicer, dedicate books to him. He would _love_ him above all and would never stop reminding the boy just as the young prince did so for him….

There was just so many things he was _dying_ to do…. So many wonderful things and…. and…

… he couldn't wait. 

**__**

"YUKI!"

His legs collapsed underneath him as a white-hot pain blinded him. Fear suddenly filled his every senses and a few moments later he realized whose voice it was that had just invaded his senses. He picked himself up and broke into a run outside the house. He was just in time to see the line of bright white light in the distant horizon, reaching towards the darkened clouds before disappearing into nothing. 

Amber eyes widened. He did not need to be told what it was. He _knew_.

"Shuichi…. Shuichi…" He whispered under his breath, before taking a few steps forward and then collapsing into the cold ground in a heap. 

He was too late.

****

~end

A/N: Now how was that? 

^__^


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